01 June 2004	Tuesday	12 Rabi-us-Saani 1425

LAHORE, May 31: The Lahore High Court on Monday allowed pre-arrest bail to Farrukh Husain Shah, the spokesperson for Mian Shahbaz Sharif, till June 15 and restrained the police from arresting and intimidating him during the period.

The court served notice on the Punjab Home Secretary in response to Mr Shah's petition, requiring the provincial government to submit its reply and explain its position for issuing a 90-day detention order.

The order was issued on May 13 under Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Order Ordinance, 1960. Mr Shah challenged the detention order through a writ petition that would now come up for hearing on a day to be fixed by the registrar's office.

His counsel, Advocate Imtiaz Kaifi, submitted in court upon an inquiry that the Punjab government had withdrawn orders of detention against most of the PML-N leaders and it was victimization in case of his client. The petition challenged the home secretary's order as ambiguous.